“Iamhappy. Serving you and helping Chrome…It’s what I’ve always known. I’m happy if you’re happy and alive. As for Chrome, I just want him to be okay. To find some normalcy and peace. He deserves nothing less. I want him to finally get the girl.” Slate offered a sad smile. “He’s been saving you for longer than you can know, Princess.”
My heart twisted. “Well, it’s time for us to save him.”
Slate rubbed my upper arms. “It is. He can’t do this on his own.”
Several moments passed, during which the only sound was the howling wind. I mused over everything as I came to terms with this new dynamic between us.
At last, I broke the silence. “It’s been weird for me since you came back,” I admitted.
Slate huffed a chuckle. “I figured as much. You got the point across when you tried to beat me into submission in the training room.”
I rolled my eyes. “The unique relationships I share with you and Chrome run as deep as the intricacies that construct our universe. If it weren’t for either of you, I wouldn’t be where I am right now. You saved me from myself. You lifted me up when I couldn’t even stand, empowered me when I was a broken little bird, and then armed me with deadly weapons. You changed my life, Slate. But Chrome has, too. He healed me just as much in a short time frame. And I don’t understand what I’m supposed to do with”—I gestured to the space between us—“this.” I sighed, emptying my lungs. “What happens to all of us when I find a way to restore him to himself? He’s going to be so?—”
“Hey,” Slate said gently. “There is no rush to figure everything out. You love me, yes. But I think you only love the past version of us, Gray. You have a chance to have a future with Chrome, who deserves his happiness just as much as you do. The sacrifices he’s made—” Slate rolled his lips inward, catching himself. “It’s not my place to tell, but all I want is for you to be happy. To find your peace. I’ve had my time with you, and I cherished every moment knowing I wouldn’t be your forever. But you deserved and needed the love I had to offer you then. Since then, you’ve grown so damn much. You’ve become someone that your younger self would be so fucking proud of. She wouldn’t have ever conceived that this is who you’d become one day. I’ve done my part, baby girl. And my time is up with you. But I’m still here by your side. And know that I’ll never stop loving you and having the breath knocked out of me whenever you?—”
I couldn’t let him finish, because if he did, a large piece of my heart might crumble to dust. I threw my arms around his waist, burying my head into his chest. “I know, Slate. I’m sorry.” He’d always be a safe place for me. Nothing could ever change that. He was familiar, and the single positive thread from my past that remained intact.
While I loved Slate, it was a different sort of love than what I had for Chrome. And it killed me to know that I could never fully return the love I once had for him years ago. That he’d sacrificed so much for me, and I never had a clue. I chose to be grateful for the time we had together, for having him in my life when I probably would’ve ended it all if it weren’t for him.
The bond between Slate and me would forever be there, but we both knew our time as romantic partners had come to an end.
Slate’s arms twined around my back, embracing me as if to shield me from the harsh gusts of the Druid kingdom. “Please don’t be. There’s nothing to be sorry for.”
“Yes, there is, because Chrome watched us. And when he’s restored…I don’t know how we’ll all recover from that. Especially with you two.” I felt awful knowing that I could’ve possibly ruined their close bond. A relationship that went back to childhood. I wasn’t even sure of the extent of it, but I knew it was one built on loyalty and trust, not just blood. And in my desperation to escape the insanity of my life and to find closure, I could’ve destroyed it.
Slate’s throat bobbed against my forehead. “That’s not your problem, Princess. Chrome and I will work through whatever challenges come for us. We always have. We’ve just gotta bring him back to us first.”
The cliff face seemed to rumble, but I was sure I only imagined it. My thoughts and anxieties sank the weightlessness that I’d been reveling in only moments ago.
“Whatever you do, don’t feel bad about needing closure or choosing Chrome. Two things can be true at the same time. You’ve been through a lot lately. I knew it was a matter of time before your strong walls crumbled and you did something impulsive. Not because you’re petulant, but because you would’ve suffocated from the weight of it all otherwise. I know Chrome will understand when the time comes. And regardless, he will love you no matter what you’ve done. That man destroyed the veil and went dark for you. I’mpretty sure he’ll forgive you, given the odd circumstances you were forced into.” Slate kissed the top of my head. “It’s unfair because I’ve had years to come to terms with the reality of us—that I only had you on borrowed time. You haven’t had that.”
I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling exposed as Slate voiced each of my emotions. I didn’t fight the tears that burned my cheeks against the cold wind. Feeling so seen and understood ripped me open again.
“While you’ve been hellbent on restoring Chrome, you’re also pissed off with him for being self-sacrificing and leaving you behind. But you saw the look in his eyes when he brought us here, Gray. He won’t be angry, but that almost makes it worse at the same time. I’d take his anger over his pain any day. Just as I would for you,” Slate said, wiping the tears from my cheeks as I leaned my head against the rocky wall behind me.
Slate had always been my oasis in such a vicious world. A place I could always go and hide when things were too much. He’d never ask questions, just protected me and loved me while thawing that frozen part that seemed ever-present. I pulled back, analyzing him in a way I hadn’t before. The veiled tightness around his eyes concealed so much pain, yet shone with so much love.
The cliff shuddered again. This time, I knew I wasn’t imagining it. As if an earthquake trembled, pebbles began to tumble down the towering structure, pinging Slate and me.
Startled, the pair of us shifted away from each other and closer to the balcony’s door. “What’s happening?” I asked, sniffling. “Is this some sort of Druid thing?”
Slate didn’t respond as he scanned the cliff for any clues as to what was happening. “Let’s head back inside.” He grabbed my wrist with one hand and a sword with the other.
“I don’t think our weapons will be of much use here if there is a threat,” I remarked as I stumbled to follow after him.
“It’s better than nothing.”
We were two steps away from the door when it flewopen. Chrome loomed in the doorway, shades of his malice promising unyielding vengeance.
“Ah, there you two are,” he said. His shadows extended outward from his body in every direction. “Did I interrupt something?” The number of jet-black veins on his neck seemed to have multiplied since the last time we saw each other.
Slate moved to stand in front of me. “How did you get in here?”
Chrome snorted, his face twisting in disgust. “I like to think I’m quite ingenious when it comes to getting what I want. Wouldn’t you agree, brother?”
“Where’s Brecken?”
He glared at Slate with hatred seeping from his obsidian eyes. “He’s alive somewhere, defending his precious books. It’s such a shame, really, because knowledge truly is power. I hate that a few got damaged so I could get to you,” Chrome said, not sounding apologetic at all. It seemed that whatever magic Slate had wielded on him to bring him back to himself had worn off already. That was too quick.
